Ballers Secure Fifth Straight Victory, 6-3
August 12, 2024 - Pioneer League (PL)
Oakland Ballers News Release
IDAHO FALLS, Idaho -- A couple early long balls and five shutout innings from Reed Butz set the tone for the Ballers in their 6-3 win over the Idaho Falls Chukars in Sunday's series finale. Following a game one loss, Oakland ripped off five straight wins to improve to 42-30 on the year, a season-best 12 games above .500.
Butz, in his first start since July 24 and seventh of the season, finally earned his first win as a Baller. The lefty scattered four hits over five scoreless frames, punching out six Chukars and ending four of his five innings with swinging strikeouts.
Noah Martinez opened the scoring for Oakland with two outs in the first. He clobbered a 442-foot solo tank to right field for his 12th home run of the season.
The Ballers blasted another 440-foot bomb in the second inning. Switch-hitter Stephen Wilmer, batting from the right side, sent an opposite-field, 446-foot solo shot over the wall in right to double the early edge.
Then, the Ballers mounted a two-out rally in the second. After a pair of walks, Daunte Stuart singled in a run, and Martinez drove in his second run of the day to complete the three-run inning.
Oakland extended its lead to 5-0 in the fifth, which proved important when the Chukars scored three in the sixth. Chase Hanson hit an RBI double and Jacob Jablonski plated two with a base knock. Conner Richardson entered and stopped the bleeding, inducing a first-pitch grounder to get out of the frame.
Dondrei Hubbard handed the Ballers some long-awaited insurance in the ninth. He pounded an RBI double off the center-field wall, increasing the advantage to 6-3 with his second double of the contest and 24th of the year.
Jake Dahle did not allow a baserunner over the final two innings of the game to lock down his second save of the season. With the 6-3 victory, the Ballers are on their second five-game win streak in the past two weeks, and have taken 10 of their last 11.
Next, the Ballers return home to face the Boise Hawks, who have the Pioneer League's best record in the second half (18-6). However, Oakland trails Boise by just three games in the second-half standings with a 15-9 mark.
The six-game series starts Tuesday, with first pitch scheduled for 6:35 p.m. PDT. As always, you can listen on 860 AM The Answer.
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